NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Treatment with a new drug that blocks the receptor for calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP) appears to be effective against acute migraine attacks, new research suggests.
CGRP is thought to play a causative role in migraine, lead author Dr. Jes Olesen, from Glostrup Hospital in Copenhagen, and colleagues note in the March 11th issue of The New England Journal of Medicine. Therefore, blocking the CGRP receptor could represent a useful treatment for migraine.
To investigate, the researchers assessed the outcomes of 126 migraine patients who were randomized to receive a CGRP-receptor antagonist at one of six doses or placebo given intravenously over 10 minutes. The drug, designated BIBN 4096 BS, which has an “extremely high affinity and specificity for the CGRP receptor,” is being developed by Boehringer Ingelheim Pharma, which funded the current study.
The 2.5-mg dose of the test drug was associated with a response rate of 66%, significantly higher than the 27% rate seen with placebo (p = 0.001). The response rate for the entire BIBN 4096 BS group was 60%.
The test drug also outperformed placebo in terms of the pain-free rate at 2 hours, sustained response rate over 24 hours, the rate of headache recurrence, improvement of migraine-associated symptoms, and the time to meaningful relief. Drug effects were first noted 30 minutes after dosing and increased in the next few hours.
Overall, 20% of patients treated with the test drug experienced an adverse effect, compared with 12% of patients in the placebo group. The common side effect was paresthesia and none of the effects were classified as serious.
“BIBN 4096 BS is the first CGRP-receptor antagonist for which significant efficacy in the treatment of migraine has been demonstrated,” Dr. Paul L. Durham, from Southwest Missouri State University in Springfield, notes in a related editorial. “The therapeutic benefit of this potential new class of drugs for treating migraine appears very promising.”
Source: N Engl J Med 2004;350:1073-1075,1104-1110. [ Google search on this article ]
MeSH Headings:Membrane Proteins: Receptors, Cell Surface: Receptors, Neurotransmitter: Receptors, Peptide: Receptors, Neuropeptide: Receptors, Calcitonin Gene-Related PeptideCopyright © 2002 Reuters Limited. All rights reserved. Republication or redistribution of Reuters content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Reuters. Reuters shall not be liable for any errors or delays in the content, or for any actions taken in reliance thereon. Reuters and the Reuters sphere logo are registered trademarks and trademarks of the Reuters group of companies around the world.